Magnetic switch assembly



March 1, 1960 w. c. FURNAS 2,927,180

MAGNETIC SWITCH ASSEMBLY Filed June 6, 1958 I 67 I "1 3 v 49 58 I I VENTOR.

V 1 mam. Gila/m5, 69 42 35 BY i .5 wg MMM control" and operation of electric motors.

Un t d States P n 2,927,180 MAGNETIC swrrcn ASSEMBLY William- Furnas, Batavia, Ill., assignor to Furnas Electric Company, Batavia, 111., a corporation of Illinois "pplication June 6, 1958, Serial No. 740,398 .11 Claims. .(Cl. 200-104) are used for full voltage'across the line starting, also for stepstatting and for other uses in connection with the The magnet coil or solenoid actuates an armature to which is connected the inovable contact member of the device. Said movable contact member has coaction with a plurality of stationary contacts carried by terminal members supported'by a stationary contactblock and accordingly one of the features of the invention resides in the provision of such a contact block of non-combustible molded plastic which will have supporting partitions of special design for supporting the "said terminal members in a manner whereby they will be visible and readily accessible for connecting a conductor thereto but which will be adeguately' separated and insulated onev from the other.

i A further object resides in a contact block that can be conveniently molded of any suitable plastic and which will becharacterized by a shape such as will provide a plurality of supporting partitions for the stationary terminal members. and which will separate the terminal members by-"means of intermediate walls so that the members are adequately spaced and insulated although positioned in open recesses for convenient inspection and for the greatest ease and facility in attaching electrical conductors thereto.

five degrees; thereby rendering the terminal members readily visible to the operator and facilitating the electrical connection or disconnection of conductors with respect theretoi ""A'nother object'is to provide a contact block which will have'a movable'contact'memberassociated therewith, said member carrying contacts for engagement with stationary contactsp'rovid'ed by the block and wherein said stationary contacts are fixed to terminal members supported and positioned by the block'in open recesses arranged in tiers and insulated by intermediate wall por- I tions'which terminatein flanges, the flanges of one intermediate wall portion providing part of the insulating wall for the'terminal member l'ocatedin the recess below.

.Another'andmore specific object of the invention is to provide aterminal member substantially in the shape of a right angle whenvie'wed iri'top plan so that the ter- 2,927,180 Patented Mar. 1, 19,60

minal member will conveniently fit the corner of a supporting partition provided therefor by the stationary contact block and wherein the terminal member is formed with a serrated groove in one leg for receivinga coriductor, thereby improving the electrical connection between the terminal member and the conductor due to the serrations of the groove.

Another object is to provide a switch assembly of the character as described having terminal members supported by a contact block and which are so arranged and disposed as to materially facilitate theinsertion of coriductors from the rear of the block and also their elec trical connection with the terminal members.

Another object is to provide a terminal member for a contact block wherein the said member and the upper Wall of the open recess within which the member is located are so arranged as to assist the operator in electrically connecting a conductor to the terminal member.

With these and other objects in view, the invention may consist of certain novel features of construction and operation, as will belmore fully described and particularly pointed out in the specification, drawings and claims appended hereto.

In the drawings which illustrate an embodiment of the device, and wherein like reference characters are used to designate like partsi Figure lis a top plan view of a magnetic switch assembly which embodies the'improved structural features of the invention; I

Figure 2 is a side elevational view;

Figure 3 is a rear view; i

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken through the stationary contact block substantially along line 44 of'Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a rear view of the stationary contact block beforejhaving the movable contact member assembled therewith and before the terminal memebrs are fixed to the block;

Figure 6 is a detail view of a supporting partition taken substantially along line 6-6 of Figure 5; and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of a terminal member for the stationary contact block. i

For illustrative purposes the improvements of the invention have been applied to a magnetic switch which essentially consists of a stationary contact block 10, a magnet coil or solenoid 11, an armature 12 and a movable contact member 13 to which the armature is 'relea'sably secured by the pin 14 and lock washer 15. The metal field piece 1 6 formed of stamped laminations secured a gether by rivets 17 surrounds the magnet coil and mounts the shank portion of the armature for reciprocating movement toward and from the contact block. "The shank portion accordingly extends centrally within the magnet coil. The vertical sections 18 of the armature aredisposed parallel to face 19 of the field piece and thus energiz ation of the magnet coil will attract the armature, causing the same to movetto the right as the assembly is shown in Figures 2 and 4. The magnet coil ll'is ener gized by applying a magnetizing current to terminals 20.'

The stationary contact block 10 may provide a base such as 21 for supporting the coil and to which the field piece 16' is secured by the fastening screws '22. movable contact member 13 is located vertically in rear portion of'th'e stationary contact block and centrally pr thewidthof the block, bang maim d for u i es r ciprocating'move'ment in aligned grooves ana 25 Groove24 is formed in the undersurface of top wall 26 and groove 25 is formed in the inside surface of bottom wall 27. The central stem 28 is channeled to receive the armature 12, as best shown in Figure 4, and said movable contact member is provided with three openings which accommodate the three terminal members 30, 31 and 32. The said terminal members are pivotally carried by the movable contact member and said members are backed respectively by coil springs identified by numeral 33. Each terminal member carries two contacts and which are disposed on respective sides of the member. Thus the top terminal member 30 has fixed thereto the contacts 34 and 35, terminal member 31 has the contacts 36 and 37 fixed thereto, whereas bottom terminal member 32 carries the contacts 38 and 39.

A pair of coil springs 40, located above and below the center stem 28, yieldingly urges the contact member 13 into a rear position as illustrated in Figure 4. The said coil springs 40 have contact as at 41 with the movable contact member and said springs at their opposite ends have location in a recess such as 42 formed in the rear wall 43 of the contact block. When the magnet coil 11 is energized to attract the armature 12, causing movement of the same in a direction to the right, it will be understood that said armature imparts similar movement to the contact member 13 and which takes place against the tension of the coil springs 40. When the magnet coil 11 is deenergized the armature and the movable contact member will move to the left until the vertical sections 18 of the armature come in contact with the wall portion 43, the said structure forming a stop which limits further outward movement of said contact member.

The contacts carried by the terminal members of the movable contact element are adapted to coact with similar contacts carried by terminal members supported by the stationary contact block, all for the purpose of controlling electric circuits, either single phase, two phase or three phase. The supporting partitions for the terminal members of the contact block are best shown in Figure 5. Between top wall 26 and bottom wall 27 the block is provided with intermediate walls 44 and 45 which extend horizontally in parallel relation to the top and bottom walls and terminate in upwardly directed flanges such as 46 and 47 for wall 44, and 48 and 49 for wall 45. Between top wall 26 and intermediate Wall 44 there is located the supporting partitions 50 and 51. In a similar manner supporting partitions 52 and 53 are located between intermediate walls 44 and 45 with supporting partitions 54 and 55 being located between intermediate wall 45 and the bottom wall 27. The top wall 26 at respective sides thereof is provided with a diagonal surface 56 so that said surface in combination with the upwardly directed flange 46 forms an open recess and which is directed upwardly and outwardly at an angle of about fortyfive degrees. Also the edge 56 on the opposite side in combination with upwardly directed flange 47 provides a similar open recess. Open recesses are also formed by flanges 48 and 49 in conjunction with the diagonal wall 57, respectively, formed in part by intermediate wall 44. A third set of open recesses is similarly provided since the upwardly directed flanges 58 and 60 are provided by the bottom wall 27 and which are also similarly spaced with respect to diagonal wall 61 formed in part by the intermediate wall 45. l

A terminal member, such as shown in Figure 7, is secured to each of the supporting partitions. Each terminal member is provided with a contact 65 which is suitably secured to the rear leg 66 of the terminal member and said leg is also provided with an opening 67 for receiving a screw such as 68 by means of which the terminal member is secured to its respective supporting partition, said screw 68 having threaded relation in opening v69 formed in the supporting partition for the purpose. The side leg 70 of each terminal member is provided with a serrated groove 71 and with threaded openings 72 and 73. Threaded opening 72 is adapted to receive a ter minal screw such as 74, whereas opening 73 receives a terminal screw 75 of somewhat smaller size. The sloping diagonal edge of each supporting partition is bevelled as at 76 in order to accommodate the angle of the terminal member and the side supporting surfaces of each part1- tion are grooved at 77 and 78, Figure 6, to accommodate the threaded shanks of the terminal screws 74 and 75,

respectively.

The shape of each supponting partition is such as to provide a vertically disposed flat, rear surface for accommodating the leg 66 of its respective termmal member and inwardly sloping side surfaces are provided for accommodating leg 70 of the terminal member. Six terminal members are supported by the stationary contact block and a contact such as 65 is provided by each member and disposed in alignment with a similar contact provided by the terminal members of the movable contact element 13. Accordingly, the supporting part1- tions 50 and 51 have secured thereto the terminal members 80 and 81, respectively, the contacts 65 of each coacting with contacts 34 and 35 of the terminal member 30. Supporting partitions 52 and 53 have secured thereto the terminal members 82 and 83 which provide contacts for coaction with contacts 36 and 37 carried by the terminal member 31. Also supporting partitions 54 and 55 receive the terminal members 84 and which have contacts for coaction with contacts 38 and 39 of the member 32. Thus when the armature is attracted by energization of magnet coil 11 the movable contact element 13 is moved to the right, Figure 4, and the contacts carried by the pivotal terminal members 30, 31 and 32 are caused to engage respectively the contacts provided by the stationary contact block, namely, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84 and 85. As long as the magnet coil 11 is maintained energized, the movable contact element will be held in its operative circuit closing position and ac cordingly terminals 80 and 81 are electrically connected. Likewise terminals 82 and 83 are electrically connected as are also terminals 84 and 85. Through these sets of terminals it is possible to control the connection and disconnection of a three phase circuit. The devicemay also find utility in controlling a single phase circuit or a two phase circuit.

Terminal members 30, 31 and 32 are carried by the movable contact element in a pivotal manner so that in a circuit closing position of the contact element the pressure will be equally distributed on both contacts of the terminal members. The terminal members 80, 81, etc., of the contact block, are so positioned as to facilitate their connection with a conductor and which is adapted to be inserted from the rear. At the rear of the contact block all of the stationary terminal members are readily accessible and also visible to the operator and to further facilitate the operation of connecting a conductor to said terminals each terminal member is provided with the serrated groove 71 which is disposed on the member along that edge adjacent a sloping wall. The sloping wall is, however, at right angles to the exposed surface of the terminal member and it is relatively easy to insert the conductor at this point, locating the same under the terminal screw 74 and the connecting operation is thereupon completed by tightening of the screw. The serrations indicate the location for insertion of the conductor and they additionally improve the electrical connection since they bite into the metal of the conductor when the terminal screw 74 is tightened. Accordingly, the upwardly directed flanges such as 46, 47, etc., not only provide upwardly directed open recesses for full visibility and for additionally facilitating the connecting operation, but in addition the said flanges partially form the diagonal wall for coaction with the terminal member located in the open recess below the same. Also the intermediate walls, such as Y44 and 45, in conjunction with the upwardly directed flanges, separate the terminal members supported by the contact block "and in additionact as insulators to'pre'vent arcing between the terminal members such as might otherwise takeplace.

As shown in Figure 1, the auxiliary control circuit terminals 86 are provided on the top wall of the contact block. The said terminals are made available'for the convenience of the customer, giving terminal points for auxiliary control circuit wiring. "Said auxiliary wiring will connect with the stationary terminal members by means of the terminal screws 75. To facilitate the connection the upturned ears 87 are provided. The wire is accordingly confined between the ears and the screw when the latter is tightened down to attach the wire to the terminal member. Also each stationary terminal member is cut away as at 88 in order to force the electrician, when connecting a lead wire to the member, to make the connection using the serrated groove 71. The

said contact block, in addition to providing an arc block and having the stationary terminal members secured thereto, also provides a mounting base for the magnet or solenoid assembly. Thus a rugged one-piece switch assembly is the result of the present design and which adequately safeguards against arcing while enabling quick and convenient wiring connections.

The invention is not to be limited to or by details of construction of the particular embodiment thereof illustrated by the drawings, as various other forms of the device will of course be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a magnetic switch assembly, the combination with a magnet coil having an armature, of a contact block having a movable contact member connected to the armature and adapted to be reciprocated with respect to the block, a plurality of supporting partitions provided by the contact block each providing a flat rear surface substantially vertically disposed and a side diagonal surface, said diagonal surface from bottom to top sloping inwardly toward the center of the block, the flat rear surface and the diagonal side surface of each partition having a right angled relation with each other, a terminal member in supported relation on the rear and side surfaces of each partition, and at least one terminal member carried by the movable contact member.

2. .In a magnetic switch assembly, the combination with a magnet coil having an armature, of a contact block having a movable contact member connected to the armature and adapted to be reciprocated with respect to the block, a plurality of supporting partitions provided by the contact block and disposed on respective sides of the block, each supporting partition providing a flat rear surface extending vertically and a side diagonal surface, said diagonal surface from bottom to top sloping inwardly toward the center of the block, the fiat rear surface and the diagonal side surface of each partition having a right angled relation with each other, the partitions on respec tive sides of the block having location between the top and bottom walls of the block and being separated by intermediate walls extending parallel to the said top and bottom walls, a terminal member in supported relation on the rear and side surfaces of each partition, and a plurality of terminal members carried by the movable contact member.

3. A magnetic switch assembly as defined by claim 2, wherein the contact block is formed of a molded, noncombustible plastic, and additionally including a contact fixed to each terminal member.

4. In a magnetic switch assembly, the combination with a magnet coil having an armature, of a contact block associated therewith, a vertical contact member mounted for movement in grooves formed in the top and bottom walls of theblock and connected to the armature, a plurality of supporting partitions provided by the block and disposed in tiers between the top and bottom walls on each side of the contact member, each supporting partition providing'ap'air' of right angled surfaces withone of said surfaces having a location at one side of the block, a terminal member in supported relation on the right angled surfaces of each partition, and a plurality of terminal member's carried by the contact member. 5. In a"magnetic switch assembly, the combination with a magnet coil having an armature, of a contact block associated therewith, a vertical contact member mounted for'm'ov'ementin grooves formed in the top and bottom walls of the block and connected to the armature, a plurality of supporting partitions provided by the block and disposed in tiers between the top and bottom walls on each side of the contact member, intermediate walls extending parallel to the top and bottom walls and separating the partitions in the respective tiers, each supporting partition providing a rear vertical surface and a side diagonal surface, said diagonal surface from bottom to top sloping inward toward the center of the block, the rear surface and the diagonal side surface of each partition having a right angled relation with each other, a terminal member in supported relation on the rear and side surfaces of each partition, and a plurality of terminal members carried by the movable contact member.

6. A magnetic switch assembly as defined by claim 5, wherein the terminal member supported by each partition is right angled in formation having a leg for contact with the rear surface of its partition and a leg for contact with the side diagonal surface thereof, a contact fixed to the rear surface leg, and a terminal screw threadedly secured to the side surface leg. 7

7. In a magnetic switch having a magnet coil and an armature, a contact block and a contact member mounted for reciprocating movement in a recess which is open at the rear of the block centrally of its width, said contact member having a connected relation with the armature, a plurality of terminal members carried by the contact member, a plurality of terminal members secured to the block for coaction with those carried by the contact member, said block having a plurality of partitions for respectively supporting the terminal members, said partitions being disposed in tiers between the top and bottom walls of the block on each side of the contact member, intermediate walls extending parallel to the top and bottom walls and separating the partitions in the respective tiers, each supporting partition providing a diagonal side surface which slopes inwardly from bottom to top toward the contact member, and the said diagonal side surfaces each being located in an open recess formed by either the top wall or the bottom wall of the block and the adjacent intermediate wall or by the said intermediate walls.

8. A magnetic switch as defined by claim 7, wherein the open recesses extend horizontally at each side of the block and open upwardly and outwardly, and wherein the intermediate walls each terminate in flanges at the sides of the block to assist in the formation of the open recesses.

9. A magnetic switch as defined by claim 7, wherein the intermediate walls each terminate in upwardly and outwardly directed flanges at the sides of the block to assist in the formation of the open recesses, and wherein each of the terminal members supported by the partitions have a side leg in supported relation on the side diagonal surface of its partition, and a serrated groove in each of the terminal members extending adjacent a wall of its open recess to facilitate the electrical connection of a conductor with the said terminal member.

10. In a contact block for an electric switch, said block being formed of a non-combustible plastic and in cluding a top wall, a parallel bottom wall and intermediate walls extending parallel to said top and bottom walls, a plurality of supporting partitions located between and connecting the walls of the block, said supporting partitions being disposed in tiers on each side of the block and each partition providing a flat rear surfaceforming a right angle with its connecting walls and a side diagonal surface which slopes inwardly from bottom to top toward the center, the said rear surface and the side diagonal surface having a right angled relation with each other, and .each side diagonal surface comprising the bottom wall in upwardly directed flanges extending along the sides of the block to assist in the formation of the open recesses.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,106,581 Unwin Jan. 25, 1938 2,254,768 Bierenfeld Sept. 2, 1941 2,792,469 Callaway May 14, 1957 Russell June 4, 1957 

